Is Kenya Safe?
Jan 8th, 2004, 11:48 AM
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Is Kenya Safe?
I want to plan a trip to East Africa and heard their may be a travel advisory warning in Kenya, particularly Nairobi. Should this warn me away. Is Boswana and South Africa considerered safer to travel?
Jan 8th, 2004, 01:24 PM
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Kenya is safe for safari. Nairobi is not always safe, but most crime there is similar to any you would find in big cities, wherever you live. With unemployment high you find petty crime worldwide.
But this shouldn't be of major concern to tourists, as any time you spend in Nairobi you will be with a guide and vehicle and perfectly safe. While some tourists might choose to walk the streets of Nairobi, not many do, and for those who do, often they have a guide with them. But it's unlikely you will be in NBO more than a day and really shouldn't be a concern, though one should be aware, as in any place.
As to Botswana, there is no place to walk except if you take a game walk while on safari.
And as to So.Africa, there are always alarmists talking about crime in Capetown and Johannesburg, yet few who even live there can claim seeing or knowing anyone affected. Though it is adviseable not to walk around JNB after dark, the reason, many tourists are put-up in hotels in either Sandton or Rosebank, northern suburbs.
Because of the advisories, tourism is down some 90% in East Africa which is a shame. Advisories are issued most often so that the particular country that issues it, is covered in case there is an incident. More often than not, they are not warranted.
Your trip to East Africa will be everthing you expect and more.
But this shouldn't be of major concern to tourists, as any time you spend in Nairobi you will be with a guide and vehicle and perfectly safe. While some tourists might choose to walk the streets of Nairobi, not many do, and for those who do, often they have a guide with them. But it's unlikely you will be in NBO more than a day and really shouldn't be a concern, though one should be aware, as in any place.
As to Botswana, there is no place to walk except if you take a game walk while on safari.
And as to So.Africa, there are always alarmists talking about crime in Capetown and Johannesburg, yet few who even live there can claim seeing or knowing anyone affected. Though it is adviseable not to walk around JNB after dark, the reason, many tourists are put-up in hotels in either Sandton or Rosebank, northern suburbs.
Because of the advisories, tourism is down some 90% in East Africa which is a shame. Advisories are issued most often so that the particular country that issues it, is covered in case there is an incident. More often than not, they are not warranted.
Your trip to East Africa will be everthing you expect and more.
Jan 8th, 2004, 05:39 PM
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Lucretia: If it were up to me, I would leave in a heartbeat to travel to East Africa. My husband and I went in 2002, and there was a warning at the time against U.S. citizens traveling to Kenya or Tanzania. In all honesty, I felt safer there than at home here in the U.S., where I live within 12 miles of a nuclear power plant. Once you get in and get out into the African bush, you will be hardpressed to even remember there is a world beyond the animals, landscape and cultures you are seeing. Go ahead and plan a trip ...
Jan 9th, 2004, 07:00 AM
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I just returned from Kenya and Tanzania at the beginning of December and agree with everything said above. At no time did we feel in danger at all -- in fact I too felt safer there than I do in the U.S. because of being so completely isolated in the bush. Nairobi is by no means a highly industrialized city. But with our driver and hotel choice (pre-arranged) we felt perfectly safe. We returned to find that the travel warning in the area had been reinstated, but we never felt threatened.
If you still have concerns, it's possible to fly a red-eye from London into Nairobi which would enable you to catch a puddle-jumper or drive to the bush within hours, limiting your time in Nairobi. Or there's the option of flying into Dar Es Saalam or Kilimanjaro airport in Tanzania, spending some time at those camps and driving into Kenya.
If you still have concerns, it's possible to fly a red-eye from London into Nairobi which would enable you to catch a puddle-jumper or drive to the bush within hours, limiting your time in Nairobi. Or there's the option of flying into Dar Es Saalam or Kilimanjaro airport in Tanzania, spending some time at those camps and driving into Kenya.
Jan 9th, 2004, 10:56 AM
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I have to agree with the above, my husband and I also traveled to Kenya in 2002 and felt more comfortable there then I do here at home in Los Angeles. Yes, Nairobi is like any big city with all of those problems caused by unemployment and poverty but never, at anytime did I feel threatened or ill at ease. The safari we took was the highlight trip in a lifetime of great trips for me, and if offered the chance I would go again. Just to put it into perspective, interestingly many countries have travel advisories about visiting cities in the US.. for the same reasons as Kenya, crime and terrorism.. these are global scourges I am afraid.
Jan 12th, 2004, 07:18 PM
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Jan 16th, 2004, 03:16 PM
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Lucretia:
Ditto to everything said. Next week I will me making my fifth trip to Kenya in three years and my third within a year. I am an older woman traveling alone and have never had a problem. You do not wander far from your Nairobi hotel. Other than that, once you get to the parks you are extremely well taken care of. By all means go to Kenya. You will fall in love with the country, the wildlife and the people.
Jan
Ditto to everything said. Next week I will me making my fifth trip to Kenya in three years and my third within a year. I am an older woman traveling alone and have never had a problem. You do not wander far from your Nairobi hotel. Other than that, once you get to the parks you are extremely well taken care of. By all means go to Kenya. You will fall in love with the country, the wildlife and the people.
Jan
